Slush pump valve



Jan. 31, 1950 A. s. VOLPIN 2,495,880v

SLUSH PUMP VALVE Filed Jan. 22, 1944 v 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 25 I 8 :52 57 3 35 IO 33 as 42- 40 28 IN V EN TOR.

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ATTORNEY.

Pumas Jan. 31, use

um'rso sures PATENT OFFICE ammo swsn run verve Alexander 8. Velpin, Houston, Tex. amass January 22, im. Serial No. mm

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The invention relates to a valve of the type utilised in slush pumps for circulating drilling fluid in the rotary method of drilling wells.

such valves are subjected to high pressures and the flow of abrasive materials which results in substantial wear of the various parts and the present valve has been conceived with a view of rendering a maximum of service while compensating for wear upon the various parts.

When a slush pump valve closes, the pressure of the liquid being pumped closes'the valve as the reciprocating pump piston reverses its direction of movement so that for instance, if the pressure of the liquid being pumped is one thousand pounds per square inch and the slush pump valve should have an area of fifty square inches, the pressure closing the valve would be fifty thousand pounds. There are two operations which must be performed upon closing the valve, one is a structure which will absorb this rap or load on the valve to bring it to a stop and the second functionistoprovideasealsothattherewillbeno leakage of the abrasive fluid because even the slightest leak will soon grow to greater propor-v tions due to the abrasive action and the hish pressure applied thereto. 7

It is, therefore, one of the objects of the present invention to provide a slush pump valve wherein there will be compensation for wear of the stopping portions of the valve so as to prevent destruction and iniury to the sealing parts thereof. I

Another object of the invention is to provide a wear compensating ring which will span the area between the valve body and the valve seat so as to support the sealing member.

Another object of the invention is to provide thecombinationof aslushpumpvalveseatand wear compensatingring which willspan the area betweenthevalveandtheseatasthevalvemoves to closed position and which will serve to close such space until the maximum amount of wear has occurred on the valve parts.

Another object of the invention is to provide a tapered guide hub for a slush pump valve stem where the minimum area is in engagement with the stem for the guiding thereof.

Another object of the invention is to avoid cloggingoftheguidestemonaslushpumpvalve.

Another object of the invention: is to avoid pinehimand wearing away of a slush pump valve sealing ring by providing a wear compensating support for the ring at the junction of the valve and seat;

Another object of the invention is to provide a isannularincondgurationandhasthepassage O therethrough. The outer periphery 1 is'tapered soastowedgeintotheopeningiintheslush pumpbody. Thisseatringisofaparticidar construction and might be said to form a Venturi opening due to the inward taper of the passage 3 uptothe point e which mayserveasthethroat through the seat ring. The seating face ll then tapers awayfrom the throat! soastoforman escape or discharge passage for the liquid being mnzped as it moves upwardly through the valve sea In order to form a guide and stopp e structu e for the valve I I the seat is provided with a spider l! which is made up oi the radial legs I! and the hub ll. 'l'helegsasseeninl'igaiandzjointhe inner periphery of the seat ring and the hub and are provided with a flat uppersurface II which serves as the stopping surface for the valve ll. These legs may be cut away slightly at I where theyioinwiththeseatringsoastoprovidean escape area for any particles which might otherwise accumulate in the corner between the leg and the seat ring.

Thehub llisofparticularand has a e I! therethrough which is tapered downwardly and outwardly as best seen in Fig. 1. This arrangement prevents the accumulation of grit or other material in the e I1 and permits of free' sliding movement of the guide stem II on the valve Ii. In order to provide maximum 3 wear and the minimum of replacement of matea ring ll of hardened or other suitable marial has been deposited in the recess ll formed face of the hub ll. This ring may or otherwise aiflxed in position and it willbenotedthatitisratherthinsoastoprovide a minimum contact with the guide stem ll. but at the same time to provide suflicient guiding action for the valve. It seems obvious that each stroke of the valve and when the valve moves to closed position abrasives or other materials which may have moved up into the opening II will fall out by gravity.

'lhevalve llismadeupo'fabodyilhaving the lower guide stem is and the upper guide stem at. This body has a radially extending flange I! which is Just slightly smaller than the diameter of the throat I of the valve seat so that as the valve moves down toward closedpositionasseeninl'ig.ltherewillbea slight space 28 between the periphery 2! of the flange 21 and the throat I of the valve seat.

A resilient sealing ring II is disposed about the body It and deposited upon the flange II. This sealing ring has a flexible lip ll whose flexibility is enhanced by the hollowed out 32. It will be noted that the lower surface 38 of this seal ring is tapered at a slightly different angle than is the seating face II of the seat ring 5. This construction causes the area 33 of the seal ring to flrst contact the seating face II as the valve moves to closed position so that the seal is formed just slightly before the valve comes to rest.

This sealing ring is held in position by a plate or plates ll which are in turn held in position by a lock ring snapped into the recess 38 formed in the periphery of the body 2!.

In normal operation of a slush pump valve the seal is accomplished as the valve arrives in its downward movement in the position of Fig. l and then the valve body is stopped as the under surface of the flange 21 comes into engagement with the stopping face it on the less it as seen in Pig. 3 where the valve has just come to rest. It seems obvious that in other types of valves the space is would have to be closed by the seal ring a which spans such opening 28. When the load of the pumped liquid comes upon this resilient seal ring the ring is forced into this opening 28 tending to fatigue and pinch away the lower corner of the resilient sealing ring. Such fatiguing and pinching action increases considerably in proportion as wear upon the stopping face ll develops and thus if such faces were pounded down and worn away so that the valve moves down to the position of Fig. 4, before being stopped. the lower corner of the seal ring II, where it spans this opening 28, would be caused to be pinched away due to recurring extreme flexure at this point.

The present invention contemplates an ar rangement for avoiding this pinching action of the resilient material at the corner and in the crevice 28 by providing a wear compensating ring ll which, as seen in the drawings, is of a size to rest or float upon the upper outer edge of the flange 21 and to overhang the periphery 29 of the flange 21 so as to span the crevice 28. The periphery of this wear compensating ring II is tapered at ll at the same angle as'the seating face II on the valve seat ring I. The sealing ring ll is provided with a suitably shaped anaeeaeeo nular shoulder 42 which receives the wear compensatingringasseeninfl'lml. Thisringis preferably snugly positioned against the shoulder 42, but it may be vulcanized or otherwise aflixed if desired. Particular attention is directed to the fact that the corner 44 on this wear compensating ring extends out beyond the lower margin of the tapered face II on the seal ring.

Asthevalvecomestorestasseeninl'ig.8, whenthevalveisnew,thepartswillbeina position as they are shown with the wear compensatlng ring engaging the seating face; it spanning the opening or crevice II and serving as a support for the resilient seal ring ll so as to prevent it from being pinched in the crevice It. When the load of liquid comes on the valve, after it has stopped as seen in Pig. 3 then the pressure in the hollowed out area 32 may cause the tapered face ll to squat down on the seating face II to form a complete seal with the seat ring.

After the valve has been subjected to considerable wear, however, it seems obvious that the valve will move downwardly before being stopped by the legs I! a greater distance than seen in Fig. 3 and in fact, may move down to the position of Fig. 4 or even father depending upon the wear which occurs. The wear compensating ring ll will be of such a composition that it will wear before the seat ring 5 wears away so that this ring will wear off to a configuration which spans the opening 28 and fits the corner 48 of the seating ring. With such an arrangement the wear compensating ring spans the opening 28 regardless of the elevation at which the valve is stopped and it will compensate for additional downward movement of the valve due to wear on the parts. If the valve had worn so that it stopped in the position of Fig. 4 with prior constructions the lower corner of the seal ring 30 would have been pinched away to such an extent that a blow-by would probably occur due to the fact that recurring flexure and pinching would have weakened the resilient material of the seal ring at the location of the crevice a. With the wear compensating ring present, however, the sealing material cannot be pinched away in the manner which previously occurred and the wear ring tends to prevent extreme fiexure of the sealing ring regardless of the position in which the valve comes to rest.

Particular attention is directed to the small amount of metal required in the slush pump valve which results in a light weight valve which re duces the pounding action of the valve. The stopping action occurs entirely across the flange of the valve which gives a wide distribution for the forces which must stop the valve. The wear on the seal ring is reduced by the provision of the wear compensating ring and this ring is of a composition which is less hard than the seat and spans the place between the valve and the seat to prevent pinching and fatiguing of the rubber as it flexes into sealing position. This wear compensating ring will wear faster than the seat so that it will follow the valve down as wear occurs between the valve and the stopping portions of the seat ring.

When the valve moves down beyond its new or original position it would normally upset the balance of the sealing ring as it moved to sealing position against the valve and the seat and might even cause a tilting action of the seating face of the resilient ring which would result in leakage, but with the present construction the seallng action is maintained in the same position against the seat ring at all times because the sealing ring is supported by the wear compensating ring and there is less change in the relative position of the seal ring and the seat rin due to wear because of the provision of this wear ring normally bridging said opening when the valve is closed.

2. A slush pump valve and seat assembly, said valve comprising a body, a flange thereon, a resilient seal ring on said flange, said seat comprising an annular seat ring, stop means therein to stop the closing movement oiv said valve, tapered faces on each said seal and seat rings, said flange having its periphery fitting loosely into the annular opening of said seat ring whereby an annular space is formed between the periphery oi said flange and the periphery of said opening, and a floating wear compensating ring normally bridging said opening when the valve is closed and so constructed and arranged that as said stop means wears and said valve flange advances further into the opening said seal ring is stopped by said compensating ring to avoid pinching of such ring.

3. A slush pump valve and hollow seat ring assembly, a valve body of a size adapted to move in and out of the hollow seat ring and to provide a space between the seat ring and valve body, means on said seat ring to stop the valve in its closing movement, a wear compensating ring loosely disposed on the edge or the valve body to span the space between the seat ring and body when the valve is closed, and a resilient seal ring carried by said valve body to bear against said wear ring and to seat on said seat ring and be supported over the space between the body and seat ring by said wear ring.

4. A slush pump valve and hollow seat ring assembly, a valve body of a size adapted to move in and out of the hollow seat ring and to provide a space between the seat ring and valve body, means on said seat ring to stop the valve in its closing movement, a wear compensating ring to span the space between the seat ring and body when the valve is closed, and a resilient seal ring carried by said valve body to seat on said seat ring and be supported over the space between the body and seal ring by said wear ring, said wear compensating ring being carried by said seal ring. 1

5. A slush pump valve and hollow seat ring assembly, a valve body of a size adapted to move in and out of said hollow seat ring and to provide a space between the seat ring and valve body, means on said seat ring to stop the valve in its closing movement, a wear compensating ring movably disposed on said body to span the space between the seat ring and body when the valve is closed, and a resilient seal ring carried by said valve body to bear against said wear ring and to seat on said seat ring, whereby said compensating ring prevents pinching of said resilient ring between said seat ring and body, when wear occurs on said stop means.

ALEXANDER S. VOLPIN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS a Number Name Date 144,844 Gould et al Nov. 25, 1873 1,040,834 Howland Oct. 8, 1912 1,725,297 Peterson Aug. 20, ,1929 1,816,205 Biedermann July 28, 1931 1,882,433 MacClatchie Oct. 11. 1932 1,896,706 Grimes Feb. 7, 1933 1,990,057 Melott Feb. 12, 1935 2,011,812 Hatches Aug. 20, 1935 2,098,662 Steirly Sept. 21, 1937 2,148,850 Deakins Feb. 28, 1939 2,214,799 I Sharp Sept. 17. 1940 2,257,199 Sloan Sept. 30, 1941 2.257309 Wells Sept. 30, 1941 2,329,570 Anderson Sept. 14, 1943 

